Andrew Dilnot appointed new Warden of Nuffield College

24 March 2011

Nuffield Foundation Trustee Andrew Dilnot will be the next Warden of Nuffield College from September 2012 when the present Warden, Stephen Nickell, stands down.

Mr Dilnot is currently the Principal of St Hugh’s College and a Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford. He is also the Chairman of the Commission on the Funding of Care and Support, an independent body responsible for the review of the funding system for care and support in England.

Nuffield is a graduate college of the University of Oxford specialising in the Social Sciences, particularly Economics, Politics, and Sociology. Granted a Charter in 1958, the college aims to provide a stimulating research-orientated environment for its students and faculty.

Mr Dilnot said: 'I'm delighted at the prospect of joining Nuffield. The vision set out in its statutes, of a place for “cooperation between academic and non-academic persons” is as relevant now as it was at the college's foundation, and the chance to work alongside so distinguished a group of social scientists is hugely exciting, as is the prospect of a little more time for my own research.’

Mr Dilnot has been Principal of St Hugh’s College for nearly ten years. One of the highlights was the announcement last year of a £10 million gift to create a dedicated building for the study of China at Oxford. The Dickson Poon China Centre, costing a total of £20 million, will be built in the grounds of St Hugh’s College. It will play a key role in the University’s strategy to strengthen its relationship with China and other centres of scholarship in Chinese studies worldwide.

Despite the move to another college, Mr Dilnot’s involvement in fundraising activities for the China Centre will continue. ‘Staying in Oxford means that I will be able to continue as the chair of the fundraising committee for the University's China Centre, which has been one of the most exciting developments in my time at St Hugh's,' he said.

Mr Dilnot took a BA Hons in Politics, Philosophy and Economics at St John's College, Oxford. As an economist, he has held a variety of roles at the Institute for Fiscal Studies (director, 1991-2002). He has also been a member of the National Consumer Council, and has served on the Social Security Advisory Committee. He is the chairman of the Statistics Users Forum of the Royal Statistical Society, and has been a Trustee of the Nuffield Foundation since 2009. In 2000 he was awarded a CBE for services to economics and economic policy.